Jehu--God's Tool Of Retribution
2 Kings 9-10
There are many things that are certain in the Word of God and despite what liberal theologians try to teach Jehovah God has a side of wrath.
God will avenge the things that have happened to His people.
This is a sure thing for the Church and also a sure thing for the little nation of Israel!
In fact God says so!
Rom 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Now this does not mean that we are to be the floor mat for the world to walk upon because God says we are to dress for war.
Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
And God also says there may be times we will have to go to war!
Pro 20:18 Every purpose is established by counsel: and with good advice make war.
War should never be an easy way out for the Christian soldier!
After all we are all tools in the Masters hands!
Before Elijah was taken into Heaven, he had been given many great task by the Lord but some of those could only be fulfilled by Elisha who had taken the mantle of Elijah and resumed the work of Elijah.
Elijah could not have done all these things himself because some of the people who were to perform these things had not yet been born.
1Ki 19:15 And the LORD said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria:
1Ki 19:16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.
1Ki 19:17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.
Today we will learn of the task given to Jehu.
Jehu was the son of Jehoshaphat who was the son of Nimshi.
When we see these names written in such a way it is so we can determine the true identity of each individual.
There was also a Jehoshaphat who was King of Judah and Jehu was of no relation to him!
There are also at least 4 men named Jehu that are mentioned in the Bible and each one a separate man!
God had chosen this Jehu to be the tool to fulfill prophecy!
Lets see these things of this Jehu unfold:
*****2Ki 9:5 And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said, I have an errand to thee, O captain. And Jehu said, Unto which of all us? And he said, To thee, O captain.
At this time Jehoram, the son of Ahab and Jezebel was the sitting King of Israel but his time and his family were just about to feel the full affects of the vengeance of God and the fulfillment of prophecy.
It should be very clear to us all, that God says what He means and God means what He says!
We are very wrong when we do not accept the Bible as the literal spoken Words of God!
This Jehu was the captain of captains of the army of King Jehoram, King of Israel and the dynasty of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel was about to meet the full effect of God's Word!
We have no way of knowing why Elisha did not make a personal visit to Jehu and it is always wrong to speculate on why but we do know that Elijah had prophesied that many people would be killed once Jehu was anointed to be the new King of the Northern Tribes of Israel.
Elisha told his young student to anoint Jehu as the new King of Israel, give him the message of the Word of God and then flee from his presence.
In most all cases this always means we are not to question the Word of God we are simply to obey what God says for us to do!
If Jehu needed any other information then he could have and should have asked God himself for guidance.
This young prophet sent by Elisha then requested a private conversation with Jehu!
We should also realize it was only those Kings that were anointed by God, that were to be the true kings of Israel and Judah.
There is a purpose behind everything that God does in this world!
And God's one purpose is spelled out for us!
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
But it is also important for us to know that God has His limits!
Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
God gave those before the great flood 120 years to repent.
God had now allowed a certain time for Jezebel and the remaining family of King Ahab to repent and that time was over.
*****2Ki 9:6 And he arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel.
2Ki 9:7 And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel.
Remember there were still 7000 even at this time in Israel that still followed the Word of God.
In the Bible retribution means the punishment for sin!
Jehu was a ruthless and crafty and a very cruel man.
He murdered his own King and he had his own Queen murdered, and he was the cause that exterminated all the family of King Ahab.
These are not pleasant things things but we must realize that the torments of Hell for the lost sinner will most of the time, begin while they are still alive and increase at the moment of death.
There is no such thing as lying in the grave until the Great White Throne of Judgment.
Luk 16:22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
Luk 16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Hell is a real place and in the Burning Lake of Fire it will only get worse and for an eternity.
There is now not one un-believer in Hell as we notice this rich man as he finds himself in Hell but "his eyes are now focused on the thoughts of his mistakes that kept him from going up to Heaven"!
It was now time for all of Israel to witness the full wrath of God poured out on the evil house of Ahab!
And verse 7 tells us why.
Jezebel was the ISIS of her day and Ahab had allowed her to murder, maim and mutilate, the servants of God!
God will appoint whatever instruments He chooses to carry out His plans!
What the world refuses to realize is that when things happen that simply cannot be explained, then it is best to just look up because the plan of God is ever working toward His final results, which are written in the Book of Revelation!
Sometimes the Word of God can come from those who are completely unexpected!
If Elisha had shown up with this message, he may not even have been allowed an audience with such a high ranking officer of the government of King Jehoram but this young prophet walked right into the presence of Jehu because no one feared his message.
As this young prophet fled, Jehu returned to his own army and informed them of what had taken place and they immediately proclaimed him their new King!
2Ki 9:13 Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with trumpets, saying, Jehu is king.
And Jehu immediately made plans to fulfill the Word of God that had been given to him:
2Ki 9:14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had kept Ramothgilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria.
2Ki 9:15 But king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel.
It was the right time for Jehu because his king had been wounded in a war with Syria and was healing in Jezreel and unable to escape the wrath and the might of Jehu.
And as only God could have caused, it just so happened that the wicked King Ahaziah of Judah was visiting King Jehoram at this very same time.
Again we see that God is never late because God is always on time!
2Ki 9:16 So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram.
By the time King Jehoram realized what was happening, it was too late and he and the King of Judah decided to face Jehu as best they could and we again see the hand of God, because of the location of this meeting.
*****2Ki 9:21 And Joram said: Make ready the chariot. And they made ready his chariot: and Joram, king of Israel, and Ochozias, king of Juda, went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and met him in the field of Naboth, the Jezrahelite.
Not many realize it but King Joram, which is Jehoram of Israel and King Ochozias, which was Ahaziah of Judah, were actually family one the uncle and the other the nephew. This is true because the daughter of Queen Jezebel, Athaliah, had wed to Jehoram, King of Judah.
Humanly speaking it was accidental that this meeting took place at the field that had been taken from Naboth.
Had the king started sooner or Jehu had driven his chariot a little slower, they would have met at some other place but God had known this all along!
God had said this would happen and it had been written down in the Scriptures and all Scriptures will be fulfilled to the letter!
Jesus said:
Mat 5:18 For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled.
*****2Ki 9:22 And when Joram saw Jehu, he said: Is there peace, Jehu? And he answered: What peace? so long as the fornications of Jezabel, thy mother, and her many sorceries, are in their vigour.
Is there peace?
If there were one main concern for the average person in our world it would be, "do we see the things that are happening in our world finally bringing peace?"
Why?
Because the heart of all men that do not know God, are never at peace!
If things are quiet for any period of time they all wonder when the next turmoil will begin!
The only way to have peace in this world is to first have peace with God!
If you notice most all people are looking for the next war, or the next earthquake, or the next flood, or the next ice age or now the results of the next climate change!
We may ask why but the answer is very simple.
Luk 6:47 Every one that cometh to me and heareth my words and doth them, I will shew you to whom he is like.
Luk 6:48 He is like to a man building a house, who digged deep and laid the foundation upon a rock. And when a flood came, the stream beat vehemently upon that house: and it could not shake it: for it was founded on a rock.
Luk 6:49 But he that heareth and doth not is like to a man building his house upon the earth without a foundation: against which the stream beat vehemently. And immediately it fell: and the ruin of that house was great.
There is only one foundation that can bring the peace of God!
1Co 3:11 For other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid: which is Christ Jesus.
Rom 5:1 Being justified therefore by faith, let us have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ:
Because there can be no peace in a world that has replaced the true God with the false idols of Jezebel!
The name Jezebel means "a vacant island that can be occupied by anyone who claims it" but is truly an enticing witch!
By definition a witch is a woman who has made a compact with the Devil and practices sorcery and enchantment!
What's wrong with our world today?
Rev 18:3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
Jehu was not bringing peace to these two kings on this day!
Jehu began to execute the program that God had handed to him through the words of that young prophet!
Many saw this a only as a revolt of the military against it's own government but in fact it was the "Judgement of God"!
Once Jehu was anointed King of Israel, he became a sword from Heaven!
Revolt and revolution had come to the Northern Tribes of Israel and Judah would also be affected.
*****2Ki 9:23 And Joram turned his hand, and fleeing, said to Ochozias: There is treachery, Ochozias.
2Ki 9:24 And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Jehoram between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.
"There is treachery" would be the last words spoken by King Joram because the allegiance of Jehu was no longer to his king.
As the arrow of Jehu found it's mark, King Joram fell dead near the land that had once belonged to Naboth but that would not have fulfilled the Word of God.
What this world needs to clearly understand is, yes God is a God of love but He is certainly also a God of "Judgement"!
Psa 9:16 The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.
Psa 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and "all the nations that forget God".
And, God had caused Jehu to remember the things of Naboth.
*****2Ki 9:25 Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite: for remember how that, when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD laid this burden upon him;
2Ki 9:26 Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, saith the LORD; and I will requite thee in this plat, saith the LORD. Now therefore take and cast him into the plat of ground, according to the word of the LORD.
It seems obvious that Jehu had been with King Ahab that day in Naboth's vineyard and had heard the words of the prophet Elijah.
Jehu could not have known that day that it would be by his own hands that this prophecy would be fulfilled!
But also on this day Jehu had realized that he was a weapon in the hands of God.
We should also realize that the fulfillment of prophecy will not be somewhat as the Lord has said but the fulfillment of prophecy will be exactly like the Lord has said, down to the most minute detail!
Many will try to convince you today that the Bible has more terror and murder in it than the Koran but you will never see in the Bible where it is the innocent who receive the "Judgment of God"!
Do the innocent die in their work for the Lord? Sure and the purpose of that is to show us that we are no better than our Savior.
Joh 15:18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
Joh 15:19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
God's judgment will come on all those that hate the Lord but also those that love the Lord, at the Judgment Seat of Christ!
Rom 2:5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
Rom 2:6 Who will render to "every man" according to his deeds:
King Joram had followed in the steps of his father Ahab and he would certainly see the same judgment of his father just as God had said.
1Ki 21:21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel,
Jehu did not stop here because on this day the King of Judah, who was also the grandson of King Ahab was with the King of Israel.
God does truly work in mysterious ways!
*****2Ki 9:27 But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu followed after him, and said, Smite him also in the chariot. And they did so at the going up to Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there.
What is the truth of the Word of God?
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
No doubt the whole family of King Ahab knew of the prophecy of Elijah!
King Joram did not meet Jehu near the land of Naboth by accident!
King Joram's body did not end up on the land of Naboth by accident!
And it was no accident that the King of Judah was with King Joram that day!
God says:
Pro 13:20 He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
The truth is that knowing the coming judgment of God, why are we such fools to hang out with those to whom that judgment will come?
What is the truth of King Ahaziah of Judah?
2Ch 22:7 And the destruction of Ahaziah was of God by coming to Joram: for when he was come, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.
There are really no accidents that happen in this world!
What is the truth of the Bible?
All those that forsake the divine guidance of the Scriptures, and reject the calling of the Holy Spirit, "destroy themselves"!
When we follow the ways of the world, we will all get burned!
2Ch 22:4 Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father "to his destruction".
Ahaziah died and was buried in Jerusalem.
Joram was cast into the field of Naboth and his body was eaten by vultures and wild animals and never reached the grave!
But then there was Jezebel.
*****2Ki 9:30 And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and looked out at a window.
Queen Jezebel was probably in her fifties by this time but she was still an enticing woman when she painted herself us and tired her hair, or at least she thought so.
There were certainly things used by the women of those days that we would call "make-up" today.
That phrase "tired her hair" means that Jezebel fixed her hair in what she thought was her most beautiful and most pleasing manner.
Today most women would go to the beauty shop before a very important day.
Queen Jezebel dressed in full royalty not to captivate Jehu but over awe him.
It was important to her that Jehu knew she was the royal Queen of Israel.
What we should notice is that, she had lost her husband because he had defied the Word of God!
She had lost her sons, because they had defied the Word of God!
By God's prophecy she would soon loose her whole family for the same reasons, yet she showed no remorse or no regret for the way she had lived her life!
Jezebel had been the instigator of evil in Israel for near 40 years and she still thought she could defeat the Word of God!
The Bible says these things of Satan:
Eze 28:16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.
Eze 28:18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
Eze 28:19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
We can see that Jezebel was herself a daughter of the Devil!
And she asked of Jehu these things.
*****2Ki 9:31 And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?
2Ki 9:32 And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.
Zimri was another one who was a captain of the chariots and who had served King Elah until he rebelled and murdered him.
Zimri had made himself the new King of Israel but ruled only seven days before he himself died.
Zimri had no peace because he set his own palace on fire and remained on the inside, killing himself and Jezebel used these words to try to convince Jehu that the same thing could happen to him.
It is a fact that treason is the highest crime of a civil nature that a man can be guilty of.
Any attempt to over throw a government is usually a bad thing but it was Jehovah God that was directing Jehu and if Jehu had faltered in this thing God would simply have used someone else!
The truth is that a world that is lost in sin "look upon the followers of Christ Jesus as mad men"!
How did Jehu appear?
2Ki 9:11 Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said unto him, Is all well? wherefore came this "mad fellow" to thee? And he said unto them, Ye know the man, and his communication.
Those that first met Jesus said:
Mar 3:21 And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, "He is beside himself".
They also said:
Joh 10:20 And many of them said, "He hath a devil, and is mad"; why hear ye him?
And of the Apostle Paul:
Act 26:24 And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, "thou art beside thyself"; much learning doth make thee mad.
Act 26:25 But he said, "I am not mad", most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.
Jehu was a man on a mission and nothing Queen Jezebel could say could change these things.
Jezebel had triumphed for many years but on this day she would meet her bitter end.
No doubt those eunuchs had even been a victim of the cruelty of this evil woman.
We live in the day of "Grace" but it is a fact that God's "Judgments Are Also Certain"!
Isa 3:10 Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
Isa 3:11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
This day, the judgment of Jezebel was fulfilled.
*****2Ki 9:33 And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trode her under foot.
At this point in her life Jezebel was the most powerful person in all the Northern Kingdom, yet her power was useless to her on this day.
God sees us as we are and to Him, Jezebel was just a sinner in need of a salvation that she had totally refused and rejected!
To Jehu, Jezebel was the most wicked woman to have ever lived and the Bible confirms that she certainly was in her day.
There was no respect offered to this Queen. Only the command to throw her down from a window that was high enough to cause her a sure death as she bounced off the side of the tapered wall and into the road.
Jezebel was bleeding and helpless and Jehu took his chariot and road over her as just another bump in the road to cross before he could be the new King of Israel.
As Jezebel had murdered, mutilated and maimed so many of God's prophets, so was the vengeance of the Lord upon her!
Mic 7:10 Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
What is the truth of the Day of the Lord?
Mal 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 4:4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
It will be under similar circumstances as these of Jezebel and Jehu, when the Prophet Elijah will return!
Jezebel is a "type" of "Babylon the Great". (Babylon has fallen, has fallen)
Rev 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Jehu is a "type" of the wrath of God on this evil world.
Rev 14:10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
*****2Ki 9:34 And when he was come in, he did eat and drink, and said, Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her: for she is a king's daughter.
2Ki 9:35 And they went to bury her: but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.
After such a deed, the first thing Jehu did was to establish himself in the royal palace and he had his first banquet.
It was only then that Jehu considered Queen Jezebel, but notice not as Queen Mother of the Northern Tribes of Israel but only as daughter to King Ethbaal of Zidon.
What had taken place would surely be an insult to her family who was a national leader who was on friendly terms with Israel at that time.
Sure Jezebel was cursed of the Lord and the Word of God would certainly be fulfilled but Jehu had thought to change things that he actually had no control over!
To be denied a burial would have insulted the government of Zidon but God had no respect for another pagan leader.
God's Word will stand up in this world as being infallible!
When those that went to bury Jezebel returned with this news, Jehu remembered what the Prophet of Elijah had said.
*****2Ki 9:36 Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:
2Ki 9:37 And the carcase of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say, This is Jezebel.
What is the truth of the Scriptures?
**God will reward everyone to their own works!
Psa 62:11 God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.
Psa 62:12 Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.
If there was no retribution for sin, then the Atheist would be right, there would not be a Loving God, but we see that they are again proven wrong.
**Every person refusing to repent of their sin will personally witness the wrath of God!
Rom 2:8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,
Rom 2:9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
This is every soul that does evil and ALL things are evil that go against the Word of God!
**There will also be a final judgment at a set time on all those that have rejected the Word of God and every record of good or bad will be exposed because God keeps good records!
Dan 7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
**The torments to that lost soul, will begin in this life, continue in a greater fashion as that of Jezebel in her death, and increase and only increase on the day of the White Throne Judgment!
Why would anyone want to be a part of these things when God has made salvation such a simple thing!
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Jezebel had caused terror in the land of the living and there are those today who are doing the same thing and God has only one answer for such things!
There would be no place for the family of Jezebel to go to pay their respects at her death except at the very wall of the city where she had met her doom according to the Word of God.
There was no grave or monument erected, the body of Jezebel was as the dung upon the face of a field as the dogs relieved themselves.
There was only one thing that remained.
Would Jehu fall into the trap of riches and power or would he follow the Word of God?
*****2Ki 10:31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.
Jehu had been earnest in removing the government sponsored Baal-worship from the life of those of the Northern Kingdom.
BUT, Jehu was slack in any attempt to remove the false religion that had begun at the whim of Jeroboam.
The lesson for us is this. We have no problem seeing the terrible sin in the lives of others but we simply do not look at our own sin in the same fashion!
To Jehu those calves made by Jeroboam were a symbol of the independence of the Northern Tribes and he did not look upon this as sin!
And King Jehu had no intention of walking in the ways of the Lord!
And what were the results of Jehu's rebellion?
*****2Ki 10:32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;
The glory of all of Israel began to grow dim and we see that another of prophesies of God began to take affect.
Elisha had said these words:
2Ki 8:12 And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child.
2Ki 8:13 And Hazael said, But what, is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The LORD hath shewed me that thou shalt be king over Syria.
Israel never recovered from these days of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel and no national leader from their time forward walked in the ways of the Lord!
Until we have national leaders that truly walk in the name of the Lord and follow the Word of God, America will continue down this path of destruction that we are on now!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
2 Kings 9-10
There are many things that are certain in the Word of God and despite what liberal theologians try to teach Jehovah God has a side of wrath.
God will avenge the things that have happened to His people.
This is a sure thing for the Church and also a sure thing for the little nation of Israel!
In fact God says so!
Rom 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Now this does not mean that we are to be the floor mat for the world to walk upon because God says we are to dress for war.
Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
And God also says there may be times we will have to go to war!
Pro 20:18 Every purpose is established by counsel: and with good advice make war.
War should never be an easy way out for the Christian soldier!
After all we are all tools in the Masters hands!
Before Elijah was taken into Heaven, he had been given many great task by the Lord but some of those could only be fulfilled by Elisha who had taken the mantle of Elijah and resumed the work of Elijah.
Elijah could not have done all these things himself because some of the people who were to perform these things had not yet been born.
1Ki 19:15 And the LORD said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria:
1Ki 19:16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.
1Ki 19:17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.
Today we will learn of the task given to Jehu.
Jehu was the son of Jehoshaphat who was the son of Nimshi.
When we see these names written in such a way it is so we can determine the true identity of each individual.
There was also a Jehoshaphat who was King of Judah and Jehu was of no relation to him!
There are also at least 4 men named Jehu that are mentioned in the Bible and each one a separate man!
God had chosen this Jehu to be the tool to fulfill prophecy!
Lets see these things of this Jehu unfold:
*****2Ki 9:5 And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said, I have an errand to thee, O captain. And Jehu said, Unto which of all us? And he said, To thee, O captain.
At this time Jehoram, the son of Ahab and Jezebel was the sitting King of Israel but his time and his family were just about to feel the full affects of the vengeance of God and the fulfillment of prophecy.
It should be very clear to us all, that God says what He means and God means what He says!
We are very wrong when we do not accept the Bible as the literal spoken Words of God!
This Jehu was the captain of captains of the army of King Jehoram, King of Israel and the dynasty of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel was about to meet the full effect of God's Word!
We have no way of knowing why Elisha did not make a personal visit to Jehu and it is always wrong to speculate on why but we do know that Elijah had prophesied that many people would be killed once Jehu was anointed to be the new King of the Northern Tribes of Israel.
Elisha told his young student to anoint Jehu as the new King of Israel, give him the message of the Word of God and then flee from his presence.
In most all cases this always means we are not to question the Word of God we are simply to obey what God says for us to do!
If Jehu needed any other information then he could have and should have asked God himself for guidance.
This young prophet sent by Elisha then requested a private conversation with Jehu!
We should also realize it was only those Kings that were anointed by God, that were to be the true kings of Israel and Judah.
There is a purpose behind everything that God does in this world!
And God's one purpose is spelled out for us!
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
But it is also important for us to know that God has His limits!
Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
God gave those before the great flood 120 years to repent.
God had now allowed a certain time for Jezebel and the remaining family of King Ahab to repent and that time was over.
*****2Ki 9:6 And he arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel.
2Ki 9:7 And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel.
Remember there were still 7000 even at this time in Israel that still followed the Word of God.
In the Bible retribution means the punishment for sin!
Jehu was a ruthless and crafty and a very cruel man.
He murdered his own King and he had his own Queen murdered, and he was the cause that exterminated all the family of King Ahab.
These are not pleasant things things but we must realize that the torments of Hell for the lost sinner will most of the time, begin while they are still alive and increase at the moment of death.
There is no such thing as lying in the grave until the Great White Throne of Judgment.
Luk 16:22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
Luk 16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Hell is a real place and in the Burning Lake of Fire it will only get worse and for an eternity.
There is now not one un-believer in Hell as we notice this rich man as he finds himself in Hell but "his eyes are now focused on the thoughts of his mistakes that kept him from going up to Heaven"!
It was now time for all of Israel to witness the full wrath of God poured out on the evil house of Ahab!
And verse 7 tells us why.
Jezebel was the ISIS of her day and Ahab had allowed her to murder, maim and mutilate, the servants of God!
God will appoint whatever instruments He chooses to carry out His plans!
What the world refuses to realize is that when things happen that simply cannot be explained, then it is best to just look up because the plan of God is ever working toward His final results, which are written in the Book of Revelation!
Sometimes the Word of God can come from those who are completely unexpected!
If Elisha had shown up with this message, he may not even have been allowed an audience with such a high ranking officer of the government of King Jehoram but this young prophet walked right into the presence of Jehu because no one feared his message.
As this young prophet fled, Jehu returned to his own army and informed them of what had taken place and they immediately proclaimed him their new King!
2Ki 9:13 Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with trumpets, saying, Jehu is king.
And Jehu immediately made plans to fulfill the Word of God that had been given to him:
2Ki 9:14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had kept Ramothgilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria.
2Ki 9:15 But king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel.
It was the right time for Jehu because his king had been wounded in a war with Syria and was healing in Jezreel and unable to escape the wrath and the might of Jehu.
And as only God could have caused, it just so happened that the wicked King Ahaziah of Judah was visiting King Jehoram at this very same time.
Again we see that God is never late because God is always on time!
2Ki 9:16 So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram.
By the time King Jehoram realized what was happening, it was too late and he and the King of Judah decided to face Jehu as best they could and we again see the hand of God, because of the location of this meeting.
*****2Ki 9:21 And Joram said: Make ready the chariot. And they made ready his chariot: and Joram, king of Israel, and Ochozias, king of Juda, went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and met him in the field of Naboth, the Jezrahelite.
Not many realize it but King Joram, which is Jehoram of Israel and King Ochozias, which was Ahaziah of Judah, were actually family one the uncle and the other the nephew. This is true because the daughter of Queen Jezebel, Athaliah, had wed to Jehoram, King of Judah.
Humanly speaking it was accidental that this meeting took place at the field that had been taken from Naboth.
Had the king started sooner or Jehu had driven his chariot a little slower, they would have met at some other place but God had known this all along!
God had said this would happen and it had been written down in the Scriptures and all Scriptures will be fulfilled to the letter!
Jesus said:
Mat 5:18 For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled.
*****2Ki 9:22 And when Joram saw Jehu, he said: Is there peace, Jehu? And he answered: What peace? so long as the fornications of Jezabel, thy mother, and her many sorceries, are in their vigour.
Is there peace?
If there were one main concern for the average person in our world it would be, "do we see the things that are happening in our world finally bringing peace?"
Why?
Because the heart of all men that do not know God, are never at peace!
If things are quiet for any period of time they all wonder when the next turmoil will begin!
The only way to have peace in this world is to first have peace with God!
If you notice most all people are looking for the next war, or the next earthquake, or the next flood, or the next ice age or now the results of the next climate change!
We may ask why but the answer is very simple.
Luk 6:47 Every one that cometh to me and heareth my words and doth them, I will shew you to whom he is like.
Luk 6:48 He is like to a man building a house, who digged deep and laid the foundation upon a rock. And when a flood came, the stream beat vehemently upon that house: and it could not shake it: for it was founded on a rock.
Luk 6:49 But he that heareth and doth not is like to a man building his house upon the earth without a foundation: against which the stream beat vehemently. And immediately it fell: and the ruin of that house was great.
There is only one foundation that can bring the peace of God!
1Co 3:11 For other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid: which is Christ Jesus.
Rom 5:1 Being justified therefore by faith, let us have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ:
Because there can be no peace in a world that has replaced the true God with the false idols of Jezebel!
The name Jezebel means "a vacant island that can be occupied by anyone who claims it" but is truly an enticing witch!
By definition a witch is a woman who has made a compact with the Devil and practices sorcery and enchantment!
What's wrong with our world today?
Rev 18:3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
Jehu was not bringing peace to these two kings on this day!
Jehu began to execute the program that God had handed to him through the words of that young prophet!
Many saw this a only as a revolt of the military against it's own government but in fact it was the "Judgement of God"!
Once Jehu was anointed King of Israel, he became a sword from Heaven!
Revolt and revolution had come to the Northern Tribes of Israel and Judah would also be affected.
*****2Ki 9:23 And Joram turned his hand, and fleeing, said to Ochozias: There is treachery, Ochozias.
2Ki 9:24 And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Jehoram between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.
"There is treachery" would be the last words spoken by King Joram because the allegiance of Jehu was no longer to his king.
As the arrow of Jehu found it's mark, King Joram fell dead near the land that had once belonged to Naboth but that would not have fulfilled the Word of God.
What this world needs to clearly understand is, yes God is a God of love but He is certainly also a God of "Judgement"!
Psa 9:16 The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.
Psa 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and "all the nations that forget God".
And, God had caused Jehu to remember the things of Naboth.
*****2Ki 9:25 Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite: for remember how that, when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD laid this burden upon him;
2Ki 9:26 Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, saith the LORD; and I will requite thee in this plat, saith the LORD. Now therefore take and cast him into the plat of ground, according to the word of the LORD.
It seems obvious that Jehu had been with King Ahab that day in Naboth's vineyard and had heard the words of the prophet Elijah.
Jehu could not have known that day that it would be by his own hands that this prophecy would be fulfilled!
But also on this day Jehu had realized that he was a weapon in the hands of God.
We should also realize that the fulfillment of prophecy will not be somewhat as the Lord has said but the fulfillment of prophecy will be exactly like the Lord has said, down to the most minute detail!
Many will try to convince you today that the Bible has more terror and murder in it than the Koran but you will never see in the Bible where it is the innocent who receive the "Judgment of God"!
Do the innocent die in their work for the Lord? Sure and the purpose of that is to show us that we are no better than our Savior.
Joh 15:18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
Joh 15:19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
God's judgment will come on all those that hate the Lord but also those that love the Lord, at the Judgment Seat of Christ!
Rom 2:5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
Rom 2:6 Who will render to "every man" according to his deeds:
King Joram had followed in the steps of his father Ahab and he would certainly see the same judgment of his father just as God had said.
1Ki 21:21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel,
Jehu did not stop here because on this day the King of Judah, who was also the grandson of King Ahab was with the King of Israel.
God does truly work in mysterious ways!
*****2Ki 9:27 But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu followed after him, and said, Smite him also in the chariot. And they did so at the going up to Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there.
What is the truth of the Word of God?
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
No doubt the whole family of King Ahab knew of the prophecy of Elijah!
King Joram did not meet Jehu near the land of Naboth by accident!
King Joram's body did not end up on the land of Naboth by accident!
And it was no accident that the King of Judah was with King Joram that day!
God says:
Pro 13:20 He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
The truth is that knowing the coming judgment of God, why are we such fools to hang out with those to whom that judgment will come?
What is the truth of King Ahaziah of Judah?
2Ch 22:7 And the destruction of Ahaziah was of God by coming to Joram: for when he was come, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.
There are really no accidents that happen in this world!
What is the truth of the Bible?
All those that forsake the divine guidance of the Scriptures, and reject the calling of the Holy Spirit, "destroy themselves"!
When we follow the ways of the world, we will all get burned!
2Ch 22:4 Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father "to his destruction".
Ahaziah died and was buried in Jerusalem.
Joram was cast into the field of Naboth and his body was eaten by vultures and wild animals and never reached the grave!
But then there was Jezebel.
*****2Ki 9:30 And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and looked out at a window.
Queen Jezebel was probably in her fifties by this time but she was still an enticing woman when she painted herself us and tired her hair, or at least she thought so.
There were certainly things used by the women of those days that we would call "make-up" today.
That phrase "tired her hair" means that Jezebel fixed her hair in what she thought was her most beautiful and most pleasing manner.
Today most women would go to the beauty shop before a very important day.
Queen Jezebel dressed in full royalty not to captivate Jehu but over awe him.
It was important to her that Jehu knew she was the royal Queen of Israel.
What we should notice is that, she had lost her husband because he had defied the Word of God!
She had lost her sons, because they had defied the Word of God!
By God's prophecy she would soon loose her whole family for the same reasons, yet she showed no remorse or no regret for the way she had lived her life!
Jezebel had been the instigator of evil in Israel for near 40 years and she still thought she could defeat the Word of God!
The Bible says these things of Satan:
Eze 28:16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.
Eze 28:18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
Eze 28:19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
We can see that Jezebel was herself a daughter of the Devil!
And she asked of Jehu these things.
*****2Ki 9:31 And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?
2Ki 9:32 And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.
Zimri was another one who was a captain of the chariots and who had served King Elah until he rebelled and murdered him.
Zimri had made himself the new King of Israel but ruled only seven days before he himself died.
Zimri had no peace because he set his own palace on fire and remained on the inside, killing himself and Jezebel used these words to try to convince Jehu that the same thing could happen to him.
It is a fact that treason is the highest crime of a civil nature that a man can be guilty of.
Any attempt to over throw a government is usually a bad thing but it was Jehovah God that was directing Jehu and if Jehu had faltered in this thing God would simply have used someone else!
The truth is that a world that is lost in sin "look upon the followers of Christ Jesus as mad men"!
How did Jehu appear?
2Ki 9:11 Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said unto him, Is all well? wherefore came this "mad fellow" to thee? And he said unto them, Ye know the man, and his communication.
Those that first met Jesus said:
Mar 3:21 And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, "He is beside himself".
They also said:
Joh 10:20 And many of them said, "He hath a devil, and is mad"; why hear ye him?
And of the Apostle Paul:
Act 26:24 And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, "thou art beside thyself"; much learning doth make thee mad.
Act 26:25 But he said, "I am not mad", most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.
Jehu was a man on a mission and nothing Queen Jezebel could say could change these things.
Jezebel had triumphed for many years but on this day she would meet her bitter end.
No doubt those eunuchs had even been a victim of the cruelty of this evil woman.
We live in the day of "Grace" but it is a fact that God's "Judgments Are Also Certain"!
Isa 3:10 Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
Isa 3:11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
This day, the judgment of Jezebel was fulfilled.
*****2Ki 9:33 And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trode her under foot.
At this point in her life Jezebel was the most powerful person in all the Northern Kingdom, yet her power was useless to her on this day.
God sees us as we are and to Him, Jezebel was just a sinner in need of a salvation that she had totally refused and rejected!
To Jehu, Jezebel was the most wicked woman to have ever lived and the Bible confirms that she certainly was in her day.
There was no respect offered to this Queen. Only the command to throw her down from a window that was high enough to cause her a sure death as she bounced off the side of the tapered wall and into the road.
Jezebel was bleeding and helpless and Jehu took his chariot and road over her as just another bump in the road to cross before he could be the new King of Israel.
As Jezebel had murdered, mutilated and maimed so many of God's prophets, so was the vengeance of the Lord upon her!
Mic 7:10 Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
What is the truth of the Day of the Lord?
Mal 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 4:4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
It will be under similar circumstances as these of Jezebel and Jehu, when the Prophet Elijah will return!
Jezebel is a "type" of "Babylon the Great". (Babylon has fallen, has fallen)
Rev 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Jehu is a "type" of the wrath of God on this evil world.
Rev 14:10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
*****2Ki 9:34 And when he was come in, he did eat and drink, and said, Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her: for she is a king's daughter.
2Ki 9:35 And they went to bury her: but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.
After such a deed, the first thing Jehu did was to establish himself in the royal palace and he had his first banquet.
It was only then that Jehu considered Queen Jezebel, but notice not as Queen Mother of the Northern Tribes of Israel but only as daughter to King Ethbaal of Zidon.
What had taken place would surely be an insult to her family who was a national leader who was on friendly terms with Israel at that time.
Sure Jezebel was cursed of the Lord and the Word of God would certainly be fulfilled but Jehu had thought to change things that he actually had no control over!
To be denied a burial would have insulted the government of Zidon but God had no respect for another pagan leader.
God's Word will stand up in this world as being infallible!
When those that went to bury Jezebel returned with this news, Jehu remembered what the Prophet of Elijah had said.
*****2Ki 9:36 Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:
2Ki 9:37 And the carcase of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say, This is Jezebel.
What is the truth of the Scriptures?
**God will reward everyone to their own works!
Psa 62:11 God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.
Psa 62:12 Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.
If there was no retribution for sin, then the Atheist would be right, there would not be a Loving God, but we see that they are again proven wrong.
**Every person refusing to repent of their sin will personally witness the wrath of God!
Rom 2:8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,
Rom 2:9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
This is every soul that does evil and ALL things are evil that go against the Word of God!
**There will also be a final judgment at a set time on all those that have rejected the Word of God and every record of good or bad will be exposed because God keeps good records!
Dan 7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
**The torments to that lost soul, will begin in this life, continue in a greater fashion as that of Jezebel in her death, and increase and only increase on the day of the White Throne Judgment!
Why would anyone want to be a part of these things when God has made salvation such a simple thing!
2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Jezebel had caused terror in the land of the living and there are those today who are doing the same thing and God has only one answer for such things!
There would be no place for the family of Jezebel to go to pay their respects at her death except at the very wall of the city where she had met her doom according to the Word of God.
There was no grave or monument erected, the body of Jezebel was as the dung upon the face of a field as the dogs relieved themselves.
There was only one thing that remained.
Would Jehu fall into the trap of riches and power or would he follow the Word of God?
*****2Ki 10:31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.
Jehu had been earnest in removing the government sponsored Baal-worship from the life of those of the Northern Kingdom.
BUT, Jehu was slack in any attempt to remove the false religion that had begun at the whim of Jeroboam.
The lesson for us is this. We have no problem seeing the terrible sin in the lives of others but we simply do not look at our own sin in the same fashion!
To Jehu those calves made by Jeroboam were a symbol of the independence of the Northern Tribes and he did not look upon this as sin!
And King Jehu had no intention of walking in the ways of the Lord!
And what were the results of Jehu's rebellion?
*****2Ki 10:32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short: and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel;
The glory of all of Israel began to grow dim and we see that another of prophesies of God began to take affect.
Elisha had said these words:
2Ki 8:12 And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child.
2Ki 8:13 And Hazael said, But what, is thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The LORD hath shewed me that thou shalt be king over Syria.
Israel never recovered from these days of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel and no national leader from their time forward walked in the ways of the Lord!
Until we have national leaders that truly walk in the name of the Lord and follow the Word of God, America will continue down this path of destruction that we are on now!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
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